Building Back Better Again: Postal Rates to increase 60 cents

[taylor_memorial]

The newest rate increase "to balance the books" is effectively 60 cents a book for retail media rate: that includes the fees charged by eBay including sales tax on the shipping increase. 

It's a good thing that inflation is over and that the economy is in great shape, otherwise I might think this excessive price gouging.

[kensgiftshop]

As much as Media Mail is abused, it wouldn't surprise me if they just did away with it.

[1786davycrockett]

@taylor_memorial 

By the way, this is not part of any "Build Back Better" program.

This was hatched up by USPS Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who was NOT appointed by Joe Biden, but by Biden's predecessor, Donald Trump.

Blame where blame is actually due.

[tobaccocardyahoo]

DeJoy is the first Postmaster General to have experience in transportation and logistics.

He is the first since USPS was created who was not a professional politician.

USPS was created by Larry O'Brien who was the ultimate pol, and that is why it could never break even, even though that was its major goal.

Obviously DeJoy is going to make some workers and some customers unhappy.

You had all better hope that his plan works because there is a good chance your choices will only be USPS and UPS. The loss of USPS' interstate traffic to UPS will hit FEDEX which is already in deep trouble.

[1786davycrockett]

@tobaccocardyahoo 

Well, DeJoy has been in office since May 2020, and so far he's batting zero.

Huge congestions at USPS Delivery Hubs in Atlanta, and Houston, and Memphis.

Congressional investigations regarding non-delivery of mail, cut-backs in delivery schedules, and eliminating USPS mailing systems.

Multiple postal increases within single years.

Demanding no overtime for delivery drivers, who must bring undelivered mail back to the post office, rather than deliver it.

Eliminating thousands of neighborhood "blue boxes."

Not such a great track record for a guy who's been on the job for nearly four years.

[dy42963]

Little to no reason for the MM service to exist.

It costs USPS no less to transport and deliver a book, or DVD than it does for some other item.

[anjofak]

And just when I was thinking a 5ft x 5ft x 8ft box from Idaho to Anchorage for 4k was almost an ok deal

[powell-memorabilia]

Seems to me that he is doing the right thing. USPS loses money – they’re only two ways to fix that. Increase revenue or decrease costs.  He is doing both – and I haven’t seen a slow down in USPS operations. Absolutely, there have been pockets of issues. But I would expect issues with any change of systems. I see it with SAP on every implementation. Temporary pain, long-term gain.

[taylor_memorial]

it was actually hatched by Bill Clinton, who decided that in order to balance the US Budget, postal patrons had to pay into benefit programs for people yet to be hired....and THEN email destroyed first class mail. 

There was one postal increase a year until we started building back better, and now there have been two a year since inflation spiked after the Inflation Reduction Act. 

Now if DeJoy was a Democrat, he could ignore the laws requiring the USPS to maintain itself, with impunity just like they all do. But you are right, he is a Trump appointee and thus has to follow the law. 

[taylor_memorial]

Today I got a book in that was shipped "Bound Printed Matter" which is a rate nearly impossible to get and does not apply to books. 

Megasellers are feeling the pinch, too. 

[lakefor94]

Chances are that if another politician (to remain obvious) made an appointment, huge congestions at USPS Delivery Hubs in Atlanta, and Houston, and Memphis would be the least of the problems incurred over the last 4 years.

The appointee would have no logistic experience and the overall costs to customers would be significantly higher than we have seen so far to go along with the worst service experience in the history of USPS. That's a given. 

[1786davycrockett]

@taylor_memorial 

"It was actually hatched by Bill Clinton, who decided that in order to balance the US Budget, postal patrons had to pay into benefit programs for people yet to be hired....and THEN email destroyed first class mail. "

Not true -- Bill Clinton wasn't President yet -- it was one of the last "lame duck" acts of George W. Bush and his Republican-controlled Congress, passed in December 2006 -- one month BEFORE Bill Clinton became president:

"Namely, the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006.

Passed by a Republican-led Congress and signed into law by President George W. Bush, the PAEA gave the Postal Service new accounting and funding rules for its retiree pension and health benefits. Up until 2006, the USPS funded those obligations on a pay-as-you-go-basis, pulling out of its pension fund and adding to it as retirees' costs came in. But the PAEA required the Postal Service to calculate all of its likely pension costs over the next 75 years, and then sock away enough money between 2007 and 2016 to cover most of them."

More blame where blame is due.

[powell-memorabilia]

You folks that like to bring politics into everyday conversations must be fun at parties 🙂

[lakefor94]

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@powell-memorabilia wrote:

You folks that like to bring politics into everyday conversations must be fun at parties 🙂

---

What I have noticed is they don't attend parties of mixed political ideals. So, no problem for certain folks 😉 

[selsa84]

That's is exactly his plan , to get you to ship FedEx and to privatise the USPS. Dejoy is horrible and needs to go.